KeyServer Fundamentals: Network Organization and Hardware Management

We’ve heard it a thousand times: “We don’t need SAM anymore because Adobe and Microsoft went to the cloud, license management is built in for this and that, and we just buy site licenses for everything now.” In other words: “We can’t win. The publishers have boxed us into a corner, and Software Asset Management just helps us keep track of all the money we flush down the drain every year.”

Now is not the time to throw in the towel and “just pay them what they want.” In the age of cloud, subscription, and user-based licensing, Software Asset Management is more important than ever. It’s not just about keeping track of what you have: SAM is about buying only what you need.

Of all the machines on which you’ve installed Microsoft Office 365 Professional Premium Gold Plated Plus Super Enterprise Edition—how many have actually ever launched Microsoft Publisher, or Access, or OneNote?

Why, then, are you paying for it?

In our opinion, there is only one way to combat the data and research publishers use to figure out the most profitable licensing models: collect your own data, and arm yourself to the teeth with it during your next contract negotiation. That’s why, in this “back to the basics” series of webinars, we’re going to walk you through everything you need to know to properly configure your KeyServer for collecting the most helpful usage data for your next big renewal.

And because SAM starts with HAM, that’s where we’ll begin. We’d like to invite you to join us for Session 1 of our four-part KeyServer Fundamentals webinar series: Network Organization and Hardware Management.

Unless your KeyServer computer network is well organized and division management is automated, your usage data may be hard to untangle, and you’ll probably spend way too much (or not nearly enough!) time dragging and dropping machines here and there for maintenance and/or hardware refreshes. So, in preparation for our next webinar on Software Usage and Entitlement Tracking, we’re going to help you organize and automate your computer management system. You’re going to learn: